Country Fried Mix | Taylor Swift Abruptly Pulls Entire Catalog From Spotify

Taylor Swift has never been the most enthusiastic supporter of free music — earlier this year, she wrote: “Music is art, and art is important and rare. Important, rare things are valuable. Valuable things should be paid for.” Her position turned more extreme Monday morning when, one week after releasing her new album 1989, Swift’s label Big Machine Music abruptly yanked her entire catalog from Spotify.

A music-industry source says Big Machine made the decision last week without negotiating with Spotify, which offers a free desktop service and allows users to pay $5 or $10 a month to eliminate ads. The source suggests the label’s potential sale has prompted founder Scott Borchetta to try to get “a pop on their sales” in order to maximize the company’s value. “It came completely out of the blue,” the source says. According to Billboard, 1989 is on track to sell more than 1 million copies in its first week.

But the source disagrees with Borchetta’s logic: “There are reasons why you can sell 1 million units, but it’s got nothing to do with not providing that album to Spotify. Every 15-year-old knows where to get that record, and it’s not iTunes.”

On Monday, Spotify issued a statement about Swift’s decision, writing, “We love Taylor Swift, and our more than 40 million users love her even more – nearly 16 million of them have played her songs in the last 30 days, and she’s on over 19 million playlists.

“We hope she’ll change her mind and join us in building a new music economy that works for everyone. We believe fans should be able to listen to music wherever and whenever they want, and that artists have an absolute right to be paid for their work and protected from piracy. That’s why we pay nearly 70% of our revenue back to the music community.”

The streaming service included two custom-designed playlists, including one that, when all the song’s titles are laid out back-to-back, say, “Hey Taylor, we wanted to play your amazing love songs and they’re not here right now. We want you back with us, and so do do do your fans.”

Music sales have been dropping all year, as the record industry navigates a shift from selling downloads to offering music catalogs via streaming services such as Spotify, YouTube and Beats Music. Album sales are down 14 percent, according to Nielsen Soundscan, and track sales are down 13 percent, but paid subscriptions jumped 57 percent last year, the Recording Industry Association of America reported.

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The Country Fried Mix syndicated radio show originates from Nashville’s Music Row. DJ, Artist, Producer & Reality Star SINISTER teams with Music Producer Charlie Pennachio. Together they deliver Country Hits back 2 back, mashed up, remixxed and served with a side of beats. 25 FM Country Radio Stations Strong.

Big & Rich Invade Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas

DJ Sinister Lands “Country Fried Mix” Radio Show

DJ Sinister is serving up “Country Fried Mix,” a playlist of country hits back to back in a remix, on Chicago’s US99 radio station this month. Numerous other stations are quickly signing on for the syndicated format developed by music producer Charlie Pennachio.  Please visit countryfriedmix.com for more details.

For the nationally syndicated radio show, DJ Sinister teamed with producer Charlie Pennachio. “I have always known Sinister to have a great ear for creating infectious and smart music,” says Pennachio. “Since the launch of the mix programming, generated right in the heart of Music Row, debuting on Chicago’s US99 our conviction in this movement has been solidified.”

The Cape Coral, Fla. native founded rock band Twisted Method, toured as part of OzzFest, became a reality TV star and is currently touring with Big & Rich. DJ Sinister is working on his forthcoming release for which he has composed all of the rhythm tracks and played every instrument. Sinister says, “Every note is composed from scratch and when people listen to it they will appreciate every nuance of work I put into it.”

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Jessica Nicholson • February 21, 2014

Exclusive Interview: Mixing Things Up with @SINISTERROCKS and @COUNTRYFRIEDMIX

Monday, May 5th, 2014 by Nicole Piering

At first glance, DJ Sinister isn’t your typical country star. He favors shades and studded baseball caps to cowboy boots and Stetsons. He rocks sunglasses more frequently than Eric Church and he’s littered with more tattoos than Brantley Gilbert. Yet at the heart, he’s a true country guy with a deep-seeded love for the music he was raised on. While country continues to expand and stretch beyond tradition and into new genres, Sinister hopes to be one of the pioneers of mixing country and dance, poised as a musical mastermind who brings the party wherever he goes.

Growing up, DJ Sinister (real name Derrick “Tripp” Tribbett), was always surrounded by country music, having parents who were big in the local country music scene. He swears that they played the honky-tonks to put him in diapers. After growing up a country fan, he began dabbling in other types of music, which is where he began his professional music career. At the age of eighteen, he had a record deal with Geffen Records as part of the rock band Twisted Method, which took him across the country on Ozzfest. Shortly after, he continued dabbling in various types of music before his paths crossed with country legend John Rich.

It wasn’t long before Sinister was working side by side with John Rich, to whom he was introduced by his music partner/producer, Charlie Pennachio. Rich gave him a publishing deal, asked him to remix some Big & Rich music and then join them on the road. Sinister admits that one of the first times he met John Rich, he dressed up in a wig and a mustache, telling everyone he was John’s cousin, Rick Rich. From then on, Sinister and Rich became quick friends, collaborators and tour mates, with Sinister pumping up the crowds with his innovative remixes between sets during the Big & Rich shows.

Although one would think that Ozzfest and country music are two different worlds, Sinister tells me that they are surprisingly more similar than you’d think, “Big & Rich, they’re a rock band. When those guys hit the stage, it’s insane…They’ve got a bar ON stage that people party at, so it’s complete mayhem…It’s pretty awesome.” And while everyone is partying, they’re looking to him to keep the party going between the sets. In order to do that, he started mixing up songs and creating mashups to see what the crowd responded to, and they loved it all. One of his first, and favorites, is a mashup of “Salt Shaker” by the Ying Yang Twins and Luke Bryan’s “Country Girl Shake It For Me.”

In addition to touring with Big & Rich, Sinister worked with Cowboy Troy on his most recent release, King of Clubs, which was produced by Troy and John Rich, Additionally, DJ Sinister’s “Country Fried Mix” is currently burning up radio stations across the country, hitting playlists on stations in Charlotte, Chicago and Miami. There, he and producer Pennachio mash up country’s hottest songs with EDM beats for a nonstop country dance assault upon the listeners that is nothing short of epic. Sinister says that the only motivation for picking songs for the mixes is what we’ll keep the crowd moving and partying.

Sinister lists Frankie Ballard and Randy Houser as two of his current favorite guys in country music. “I recently worked on some music with Frankie Ballard, he’s really good,” he says.” And Randy Houser is just a great guy all around. You never know what to expect when you’re walking up with a hat with fifty spikes on it, but he’s great all around.” He also lists playing with Charlie Daniels as another highlight of his career thus far. When it comes to future collaborations, Sinister is open to anyone who’d like to work with him. “I’m all over the place, but there’s no one particular that I’m shooting for, but if anyone wants me to come out and play with them I’m down.” However, he does have a soft spot for one country bachelor, “I’d like to go out with maybe Chris Young. I’m really feeling that ‘Aw Naw.’ I have that one mixed up and it’s pretty crazy – that’s one of my favorite ones I like mixing.”

Sinister admits that, while country music has dabbled in hip hop and rap recently, he feels like this year could be the beginning of a shift towards EDM and dance music in country, as already seen on projects by the likes of Jerrod Niemann and a forthcoming project from Big Kenny. “This could be the year – I have a feeling there are going to be a few songs coming out that are right for four on the floor, 120 BPM…really stomping songs.”

While some traditionalists may complain about the current state of country music, DJ Sinister is both loving and embracing it. “Right now, I really like it and that’s why I want to be a part of it,” he says. “Ten years ago there may not have been a spot for me in Nashville because I’m so out there. I love it.”

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Cowboy Troy Goes West(ern) With “King of Clubs”

NEW ALBUM FEATURES SONG TO HONOR SATURDAYS SPENT WITH MOM.

Eric Church to Release ‘The Outsiders’ Vinyl For Record Store Day

Eric Church fans will soon be able to add his No. 1 album, The Outsiders, to their vinyl collections. Church has revealed that his most recent release will be available for Record Store Day this Saturday (April 19).

The Outsiders vinyl will include two bonus tracks and an exclusive album poster.

This isn’t the first time Church has played a part in Record Store Day. Last year, he released a double-vinyl version of his live album Caught in the Act that also included a 7-inch single made with whiskey. Jack Daniels was mixed into the vinyl before the singles were pressed.

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Keith Urban Had Good Reasons for Choosing Tourmates

What does it take for Keith Urban to sing your praises? Brett Eldredge and Jerrod Niemann are finding out before they join him on his Raise ‘Em Up tour this summer.

In a recent interview, Urban revealed why he chose the hot young stars to join him on the upcoming wild ride.

“I had heard Jerrod’s record as it was being done because Jimmie Lee Sloas is a friend of mine, and he’s producing it, and so he sent me some tracks,” Urban said. “Literally, it was when I heard about six tracks off that record, I immediately wanted to see if he would come out and join us.”

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Randy Houser Earns Third No. 1 with ‘Goodnight Kiss’

After visiting the top of the country singles chartstwice last year with “How Country Feels” and “Running Out of Moonlight,” country artist Randy Houser is back in the No. 1 spot on the Mediabase country singles chart this week with “Goodnight Kiss.”

http://us995.cbslocal.com/2014/04/17/randy-houser-earns-third-no-1-with-goodnight-kiss/